Apparatus for removing shoe lifts



March 22, 1966 E. a. NAPOLITANO APPARATUS FOR REMOVING SHOE LIFTS 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Jan. 29, 1965 INVENTOR. ERNEST B. NAPOLITANO ATTORNEYS March 22, 1966 E. a. NAPOLITANO APPARATUS FOR REMOVING SHOE LIFTS 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Jan. 29, 1965 IN VENTOR.

ATTORNEYS 3,241,165 APPARATUS FOR REMOVING SHOE LIFTS Ernest I3. Napolitano, 4243 Wayburn Ave., Detroit, Mich. Filed Jan. 29, 1965, Ser. No. 429,055 Claims. (Cl. 12--50.5)

This invention relates generally to the shoe repair art, and more particularly, to a shoe repair machine for removing and installing heel lifts on womens shoes.

The modern spike heeled shoes are provided with slender heel blocks on which is mounted the top lift or heel lift by means of an elongated dowel pin or nail. This elongated dowel pin presents a problem when replacing worn heel lifts. In most instances it is impossible to remove this elongated pin from the heel block by means of conventional hand pliers or other tools. In order to overcome this problem of replacing worn heel lifts, attempts have been made to provide a machine for removing worn top lifts secured to a heel block with an elongated pin. Examples of such prior shoe repair machine constructions are shown in the US. Patents Nos. 2,992,445, 3,069,707 and 3,083,385. Some of the disadvantages still existing in the machine constructions shown in these patents is that the means for clamping the heel lift for removing the same are slow-acting and time consuming. Another disadvantage is that they do not provide protection against the accidental slipping off of portions of the heel block, thereby damaging the shoe. In view of the foregoing, it is an important object of the present invention to provide a novel and improved shoe repair machine for removing and replacing heel lifts on womens shoes which is simple and compact in construction, economical of manufacture, and efiicient in operation.

It is another object of the present invention to provide a heel lift removing apparatus which will remove the heel lift and the dowel pin from a heel block on a womans shoe without damage to the heel block.

It is still another object of the present invention to provide a heel lift removing apparatus which includes a pair of quick-acting jaws for gripping the heel lift or dowel pin, and a cam means for moving the jaws into a gripping position by means of a lever.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide a heel lift removing apparatus which can be operated with less force than is required to operate prior heel removing devices.

It is still a further object of the present invention to provide a novel heel lift removing apparatus which includes a shoe rest or support member mounted on an elongated base, gripping means for engaging the heel lift on the shoe mounted in the shoe support member, means for retaining the shoe in the shoe support member, and means for pulling the gripping means to extract the heel lift and retainer dowel pin from the shoe in the shoe support.

It is still a further object of the present invention to provide a novel heel lift removing apparatus provided with a gripping means for engaging a heel lift on a shoe for removing the same, and wherein said gripping means is provided with a stop means to limit the inward movement of the shoe heel between the gripping jaws so as to insure seating of the jaws on the heel lift and not on the heel block, to prevent injury to the heel block.

Other objects, features and advantages of this invention will be apparent from the following detailed description, appended claims, and the accompanying drawings.

In the figures: FIGURE 1 is a side elevational view of the heel lift removing apparatus made in accordance with the principles of the present invention;

' United States Patent 0 FIGURE 2 is a top plan view of the structure that Was illustrated in FIGURE 1, taken along the line 22 thereof, and looking in the direction of the arrows;

FIGURE 3 is an elevational sectional view of the structure illustrated in FIGURE 2, taken along the line 33 thereof, and looking in the direction of the arrows;

FIGURE 4 is a fragmentary, elevational view of the structure illustrated in FIGURE 2, taken along the line 4-4 thereof, and looking in the direction of the arrows;

FIGURE 5 is a fragmentary, elevational sectional view of the structure illustrated in FIGURE 2, taken along the line 5-5 thereof, and looking in the direction of the arrows;

FIGURE 6 is a fragmentary, enlarged elevational sectional view of the structure illustrated in FIGURE 3, taken along the line 66 thereof, and looking in the direction of the arrows;

FIGURE 7 is a fragmentary, broken, side elevational view of the left end structure of the apparatus of FIG- URE l, and showing a shoe mounted on the final tap support for a final blow by a hammer to insure mounting of the replacement heel lift.

Referring now to the drawings, and in particular to FIGURES 1, 2 and 3, a preferred embodiment of the invention is illustrated and comprises a base member in the form of an elongated plate designated by the numeral 10. The base member 10 may be made from any suitable material, as for example, a steel plate. The base 10 is provided with the transverse rubber pads 11 and 12, at the opposite ends thereof, for supporting the base member. The rubber pads 11 and 12 may be fixedly secured to the base 10 by any suitable means, as for example, by the metal screws 13.

As shown in FIGURES 1, 2 and 3, the heel lift removing apparatus of the present invention includes a shoe heel block support or rest generally indicated by the numeral 14, a heel lift gripping means generally indicated by the numeral 15, a pulling means generally indicated by the numeral 16, and a shoe retaining means generally indicated by the numeral 17. The numeral 18 in FIGURES 1, 2 and 3 generally indicates a portion of a womans shoe which is mounted on the shoe heel block support 14 for the purpose of having a worn heel lift replaced by the apparatus of the present invention.

As is best seen in FIGURE 3, the womans shoe 18 is shown as provided with the usual elongated heel block 19, to the lower end of which is mounted a heel lift 20 by means of the elongated dowel pin or nail 21. As shown in FIGURES 3 and 6, the shoe heel block support 14 comprises a block 22 which is made from any suitable material, as for example, wood. The block 22 is provided with the contoured opening 25 which is shaped in accordance with the cross-section of a heel block. The block 22 is covered with a layer of material 24 which functions as a padding for the'heel block and which may be made from any suitable material. The padding 24 extends into the contoured hole 25, as shown in FIGURE 3. As shown in FIGURE 3, the block 22 is secured to the plate 10 by means of the screws 23.

The apparatus of the present invention is provided with a hand grip for use by the operator of the apparatus, and this hand grip is generally indicated by the numeral 26 in FIGURE 2. The hand grip 26 is substantially U- shaped in cross section and includes the transverse portion or hand engaging portion 27 and the two vertically disposed integral legs 28 and 29. The legs 28 and 29 are mounted in suitable holes in the plate 10 and are secured to the plate by means of a pair of nuts as 30 and 31, respectively. The lower ends of the legs 28 and 29 are threaded, and one nut of each pair is disposed on the top of the plate 10 and the other nut of each pair is disposed on the bottom of the plate 10.

The shoe 18 is retained in the shoe heel block support 14 by means of the following described retainer means structure. The retainer means structure includes the elongated strap 32 which may be made of any suitable material, as for example leather. As shown in FIGURE 2, one end of the strap 32 is looped around the vertical rod 28 of the hand grip member 26. The strap 32 then passes around and over the retainer block 34 which is shaped to fit the inside contour of the shoe 18, as shown in FIGURES 1 and 2. The strap 32 is retained on the block 34 by means of the metal strap or bracket 35. The bracket 35 is secured to the top side of the block 34 by any suitable means. The bracket 35 has a raised central portion under which the strap 32 passes. The other end of the strap 32 is connected to the front end of a lever 36. As shown in FIGURES l and 2, the strap 32 is provided with a suitable buckle means for lengthening or shortening the two portions which comprise the strap 32.

The shoe retainer means further includes a quick operating clamping means of which the lever 36 comprises a portion. As shown in FIGURES 1 and 2, the inner end of the lever 36 is pivotally mounted by means of the pivot pin 37 to the inner ends of the lever arms 38 and 39. The lever 36 is adapted to be disposed between the arms 38 and 39 in a close fitting relationship. In the locked or clamped position, lever 36 is substantially parallel with the arms 38 and 39, as shown by the solid line positions of FIGURES 1 and 2.

The lever arms 38 and 39 are integrally formed on the forward end of the clamp operating handle 40. The lever arms 38 and 39 are pivotally mounted in the space 41 between the arms 43 and 44 of the retainer means supporting member 42. The lever arm 38 is pivotally mounted by means of the pivot pin 45 to the base member inner arm 43. The lever arm 39 is pivotally mounted by means of the pivot pin 46 to the outer base member arm 44. The base member 42 is detachably secured to the base plate by means of the bolts 48. It will be seen that the base member 42 is disposed on the side of the base plate 10 adjacent to what may be termed the rear end of the base plate 10, and on the left side thereof.

In use, the clamp operating arm 40 is moved from the locked, solid line position shown in FIGURE 1, to the dotted line position 47, to release the retainer strap 32 to enable the block 34 to be removed from the shoe 18. When a new workpiece or shoe 18 is mounted in the support 14, the block 34 is put into the shoe 18 in the position shown in FIGURE 1, and the lever 40 is then moved from the dotted line position 47 downwardly to the solid line position shown in FIGURE 1. It will be seen that the shoe retainer means is adapted to permit the operator to quickly and easily mount a shoe in the support 14 for a heel lift removal or installation operation.

The heel lift gripping means comprises the U-shaped frame or support member formed from the pair of horizontally disposed, vertical plates 49 and 50 and the integral transverse vertical plate 51. These plates form a substantially U-shaped frame with the open end facing the heel block support 14. A slide or supporting member is provided to carry the gripping means support frame for sliding movement backward and forward on the upper surface of the base plate 10. The frame slide member includes an L-shaped bracket having the horizontal leg 52, and the integral leg 53 which is fixedly secured to the frame vertical transverse wall 51 by means of the screws 54.

The gripping means frame is connected to a pull rod 55. As best seen in FIGURE 3, the front end of the pull rod 55 is threaded and reduced as indicated by the numeral 56, and the reduced end passes through the hole 57 in the frame wall 51 and is fixedly secured to the frame wall 51 by means of the nut and washer means 58. The pull rod 55 is adapted to move the gripping means 15 forwardly and backwardly to carry out a heel lift removing and installing operation, as will be more fully described hereinafter.

As shown in FIGURES 2 and 3, the gripping means 15 further includes a pair of vertically spaced apart, pivotally mounted gripping jaws 59 and 60. The jaws 59 and 60 are pivotally mounted between the frame walls 49 and 59, at a substantially central position by means of the transverse pivot pins 61 and 62, respectively. Fixedly mounted to the outer ends of the jaws 59 and 611 are the gripping elements 63 and 65, respectively. The gripping elements 63 and 65 are fixedly secured to the jaws 59 and 60 by means of the screws 64 and 65, respectively. As shown in FIGURE 1, when the gripping elements 63 and 65 are pivoted toward each other, they will engage the shoe lift 20 for removing the same, as more fully described hereinafter.

As shown in FIGURES 1 and 3, the gripping jaws 59 and 60 are adapted to be biased apart to the open position by the coil spring 67. The spring 67 is vertically disposed between the jaws 59 and 60 at a point forward of the pivot pins 61 and 62. The upper end of the spring 67 is operatively connected to the upper jaw 59 by means of the anchor pin 68. The lower end of the spring 67 is operatively connected to the lower jaw 60 by means of the anchor pin 69.

As best seen in FIGURE 3, the lower gripping jaw 60 is provided with a stop means comprising an angle plate disposed along the inside edge of the lower gripping element 65. The stop means comprises the vertical plate 76 to which is integrally formed the horizontal plate 71. The plate 71 is fixedly secured to the lower gripping jaw 60 by means of the screws 72.

The gripping jaws 59 and 60 are cam actuated into the closed or gripping position shown in FIGURE 1 by the cam 73 which is horizontally disposed between the grip ping jaws. As shown in FIGURES 1, 2 and 3, the cam 73 is horizontally disposed and is mounted on the transverse shaft 74 and is secured thereto by means of the retainer pin 75. As shown in FIGURE 2, the shaft 74 is rotatively mounted in the holes 77 and 76, in the frame walls 46 and 50, respectively. The shaft 74 is connected to the shaft extension 79 which is disposed perpendicular to the shaft 74 and which is provided on the outer end thereof with the cam operating handle 80. FIGURE 3 shows the cam 73 in the inoperative position with the handle 80 in a vertical position. FIGURE 1 shows the cam 73 in an operative position with the handle 80 disposed in a horizontal position. It will be seen that the cam 73 is substantially rectangular in overall cross section configuration with the ends thereof rounded along the longest dimension of the cam, and with the ends flat along the shortest dimension of the cam. When the cam is disposed in the position of FIGURE 3, the rounded edges on the cam are disposed in a horizontal inoperative position. When the cam 73 is rotated counterclockwise, as viewed in FIGURE 3, the rounded edges are then turned to the vertical position so as to contact the inner sides of the gripping jaws 59 and 60 and spread the inner ends of these jaws apart so as to bring the outer ends and the gripping elements 63 and 65 together into a gripping engagement with the heel lift 20. It will be seen that the gripping elements 63 and 65 may thus be quickly and easily brought together into a closing engagement with a heel lift for removing the same. The gripping elements 63 and 65 may be quickly disengaged from a heel element in a reverse manner by moving handle 80 from the horizontal position of FIGURE 1 to the vertical position of FIGURE 3.

As shown in FIGURES 1 and 2, the pull rod 55 extends rearwardly, or to the right as viewed in these figures, and into sliding engagement with the hole 81 in the gear block 82. The gear block 82 is provided with a gear chamber 83 which communicates with the longitudinally extended horizontal rod hole 81. The gear block 82 is fixedly secured to the base plate by any suitable means, as by a plurality of the screws 84.

As shown in FIGURE 4, the gear chamber 83 is open on the upper end to the exterior of block 82. The gear chamber 83 is enclosed by a removable cover plate 85 which is secured to the top of the gear block 82 by a plurality of screws 86. As shown in FIGURES 2 and 4, the pull rod 55 is provided on the rear end thereof with a gear rack 87 which meshes with the gear 88 that is opera tively disposed in the gear chamber 83.

As best seen in FIGURE 4, the gear 88 is fixed on the vertically disposed shaft 89 by means of the retainer pin 90. The lower end of the shaft 89 is journaled in the sleeve bearing 91 which is disposed in the vertical hole 92 in the block 82 and which hole communicates with the lower end of the gear chamber 83. The upper end of the shaft 89 is journaled in the sleeve bearing 94 which is disposed in the hole 93 in the cover plate 85.

As shown in FIGURES 1, 2 and 3, an operating lever 96 is provided with a hole 95 on the inner end thereof and in which is received the upper end of the shaft 89. The shaft 89 is secured to the operating lever 96 by means of the retainer pin 97. The operating lever 96 is provided with a handle 98 which extends outwardly from the lever 96 in a perpendicular direction.

In use, the shoe 18 would be mounted in the support 14 and secured in place in the position shown in FIGURE 1 by the retainer means 17. The gripping jaws 59 and 60 would be disposed in the open position as shown in FIG- URE 3, and the handle 98 would be moved in a counterclockwise direction to bring the gripping means 15 to the dotted line position shown in FIGURE 2. The heel lift would abut the stop 70 to limit the movement of the gripping means 15 toward the shoe and the operator would then stop the movement of the lever 96 and move the cam actuation handle 80 downwardly in a counterclockwise direction to the position shown in solid lines in FIGURE 2, so as to bring the gripping elements 63 and 65 into gripping engagement with the heel lift 20.

The heel lift 20 and the dowel pin 21 may then be quickly and easily removed from the heel block 19 by rotating the lever 96 in a clockwise direction as viewed in FIGURE 2, whereby the dowel pin 21 will be pulled from the heel block 19. The pulling action is continued until the dowel pin 21 is removed from the heel block 19. The worn heel lift 20 may then be released from the gripping means 15 by moving the cam actuation handle 80 to the position shown in FIGURE 3 to unclamp the worn heel lift.

A new heel lift may be quickly and easily mounted in the heel block 19 by first closing the gripping elements 63 and 65 to provide a pushing means. The new heel lift dowel pin is then manually inserted into the hole in the heel block 19 and the closed gripping jaws moved toward the new heel 20 so as to engage it on the bottom side thereof. Continued movement to the left by the gripping means 15 will force the new dowel 21 into the heel block 19 in a quick and efficient manner. The new heel lift 20 may be given an additional tap by a hammer to insure complete seating of the dowel pin 21 in the heel block 19 by means of the structure shown in FIGURE 7.

As shown in FIGURES 2 and 7, the apparatus of the present invention is provided with a vertically disposed rod 99, the lower end of which is mounted in the hole 100 in the base plate 10 by means of a slip fit. Integrally formed on the upper end of the rod 99 is a shoe last 101 made from any suitable material. After a new heel lift 20 has been mounted on the heel block 19, the shoe 18 may be mounted on the last 101 and the heel lift 20 given a final tap with a hammer 102 to insure that it is seated completely in the heel block 19 by means of such tap.

It will be understood that although the operating handle 98 has been shown as being disposed on the top of the apparatus, it may be disposed on the side of the apparatus by turning the position of the gear 88 and the rack '87 so as to dispose the lever 96 and handle 98 on the side of the apparatus. The pulling means of the present invention provides an apparatus that can be operated with less force than is required to operate the prior art devices. The gripping jaws are spring opened and are cam closed. The last mentioned spring and cam operating structure provides a gripping means which is fast acting so that an operator can service many more pairs of shoes per day than was heretofore possible with any prior art machine.

While it will be apparent that the preferred embodiment of the invention herein disclosed is well calculated to fulfill the objects above stated, it will be appreciated that the invention is susceptible to modification, variation and change without departing from the proper scope or fair meaning of the subjoined claims.

What I claim is:

1. In a shoe heel lift repair apparatus, the combination comprising: a shoe rest; a gripping means for gripping the heel lift of a shoe comprising, a pair of pivotally mounted gripping jaws, means for pivoting said jaws away from each other into an open position, and cam means for piv= oting the jaws toward each other into a heel lift gripping position; strap retainer means for releasably retaining a shoe in the shoe rest during a heel lift repair operation; and, means for pulling said gripping means to remove the heel lift from the shoe in the shoe rest.

2. The shoe heel lift repair apparatus as defined in claim 1, wherein: said strap retainer means includes means anchoring one end of the strap, the other end of said strap being movable between a shoe retaining position and a shoe release position.

3. The shoe heel lift repair apparatus as defined in claim 2, wherein: said strap retainer means further includes a clamp means for moving said other end of said strap between the shoe retaining position and the shoe release position.

4. The shoe heel lift repair apparatus :as defined in claim 1, wherein: said means for pulling said gripping means comprises a pull rod, a gear rack on said pull rod, said pull rod being connected to said gripping means, a gear meshably connected with said gear rack, and means for turning said gear to move said pull rod and gripping means.

5. The shoe heel lift repair apparatus as defined in claim 1, wherein: said gripping means includes a frame having a pair of vertical spaced apart plates, said gripping jaws being vertically spaced apart and disposed between said plates, means intermediate the length of each of said gripping jaws for pivotally supporting said jaws on said plates, said means for pivoting said jaws away from each other into an open position comprising a spring means, and said cam means for pivoting the jaws toward each other in a heel lift gripping position comprising a cam movable between inoperative and operative positions by rotating the cam.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,992,445 7/1961 Nelson 12-50.5 3,069,707 12/ 1962 Harper 12-505 3,083,385 4/1963 Chafin et al 12-505 3,171,147 2/1965 Friday 1250.5

FOREIGN PATENTS 904,534 8/1962 Great Britain.

JORDAN FRANKLIN, Primary Examiner, 

1. IN A SHOE HEEL LIFT REPAIR APPARATUS, THE COMBINATION COMPRISING: A SHOE REST; A GRIPPING MEANS FOR GRIPPING THE HEEL LIFT OF A SHOE COMPRISING, A PAIR OF PIVOTALLY MOUNTED GRIPPING JAWS, MEANS FOR PIVOTING SAID JAWS AWAY FROM EACH OTHER INTO AN OPEN POSITION, AND CAM MEANS FOR PIVOTING THE JAWS TOWARD EACH OTHER INTO A HEEL LIFT GRIPPING POSITION; STRAP RETAINER MEANS FOR RELEASABLY RETAINING A SHOE IN THE SHOE REST DURING A HEEL LIFT REPAIR OPERATION; AND, MEANS FOR PULLING SAID GRIPPING MEANS TO REMOVE THE HEEL LIFT FROM THE SHOE IN THE SHOE REST. 